Sears Holdings
National retail chain with Sears and Kmart stores.
Headquarters:
3333 Beverly Road
Hoffman Estates, IL 60179
Employees: 178,000
CEO: Eddie Lampert
Stock Symbol: SHLD
Website: http://www.searsholdings.com
Career Site
Sears Holdings is one of the nation's largest retailers. It was formed in 2005 with the merger of Sears Roebuck & Co. and Kmart. The company operates over 1,672 stores nationwide.
Sears Holdings is the leading home appliance retailer in North America and is a retail sales leader in tools, lawn and garden, home electronics, and automotive repair and maintenance. Key brands include Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard, and a broad apparel offering, including such well-known labels as Joe Boxer and Jaclyn Smith.
Sears has over 705 full-line stores in the U.S. and Puerto Rico averaging 138,000 square feet.
Kmart has 941 discount stores in 49 states, Guam, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands. The average Kmart store has 95,000 square feet and carries between 60,000 and 80,000 products while the superstores average 170,000 square feet and have 100,000-150,000 products.
Sears is one of the largest providers of home repair services with more than 12 million service calls made annually.
Eddie Lampert is the Chairman of Sears Holdings and is well-known as a hedge fund manager and investor. The company has struggled with declining sales and losses.
The company has closed hundreds of stores over the last several years with more likely to come. Employment at the company is down more than 100,000 employees over the past several years.
In fiscal 2015, Sears Holdings reported revenues of $25.1 billion, down from $31.2 billion the previous year, and net loss of $1.12 billion.
For the full year, Kmart experienced positive comparable store sales performance in the home appliances, mattresses and seasonal categories, which were more than offset by declines in the consumer electronics, apparel, grocery & household and drugstore categories. Excluding the impact of consumer electronics, Kmart comparable store sales would have decreased 5.5%. Sears Domestic comparable store sales for the year were also negatively impacted by consumer electronics. Excluding the impact of consumer electronics, Sears Domestic comparable store sales would have decreased 9.5%, primarily driven by decreases in apparel, home appliances, lawn & garden and Sears Auto Centers, which were partially offset by an increase in the mattress category.
History
In 1886, Richard Sears began the R.W. Sears Watch Company in Minneapolis. In 1887, Sears settles in the company's first Chicago location and hires a watchmaker named Alvah C. Roebuck. The company formed a catalog in 1888 featuring watches and jewelry.
In 1893, the company's name becomes Sears, Roebuck and Co. The company would launch its first general catalog in 1896 which would allow millions of Americans to shop from home and receive goods via mail.
The first Sears Roebuck retail store opened in 1925 in a catalog center on Chicago's west side. Sears would launch the Kenmore appliance and Craftsman hardware brands in 1927.
In 1973, Sears would move its headquarters to Sears Tower in Chicago, which was then the world's tallest building.
In 1899, Sebastian S. Krege founded the S. S. Kredge stores. The company would expand and by 1962, opened its first Kmart discount store in the Detroit area. The S.S. Kredge company changed its name to Kmart Corp. in 1977.
In 2002, Kmart filed for bankruptcy and closed 600 stores. It emerged from Chapter 11 a year later under the leadership of Edward Lampert, a hedge fund manager. Lampert led the merger with Sears in 2004 and is now the company's chairman.
The spunoff Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores, Inc. in October 2012, raising $446.5 million for Sears Holdings. It also completed a partial spin-off of Sears Canada and now owns 51%.
The company spun off Land's End in 2014 into a separately traded company.
The company also separated from Sears Canada in 2014.
Benefits
The following are offered to employees of both Kmart and Sears but may vary depending on position
- Medical coverage
- Dental plan
- Legal plan
- 401(k) savings plan
- Flexible Spending Account
- Associate discount
- Tuition reimbursement
- Short-term and Long-term Disability Insurance
- Vacation and holidays
The Sears headquarters campus in Hoffman Park, IL offers the following:
· Fitness Center
· Recreation Leagues
· Childcare Center
· Associate Referral Program
· Hair Salon
· Auto Center
· Pharmacy
· Dry Cleaners
· Bank
· Optical Center
· Health Center
· Sample Store
· Cafeteria
· Deli
· Sears Center Box Office
· Business Casual Dress Code
Updated June 5, 2016
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